Accept M-Pesa STK Push payments at checkout in your Easy Digital Downloads store.

Download the plugin

Fortpesa for Easy Digital Downloads v1.0.0 (ZIP)

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What you need

  • Easy Digital Downloads 3.0+ (2.9+ should also work)
  • PHP 7.4+ on your hosting
  • Store currency set to KES — the M-Pesa gateway only shows for Kenyan shilling stores
  • A Fortpesa account with an approved payment channel
1

Install the plugin

Download the ZIP above, then in WordPress go to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin, choose fortpesa-for-edd.zip, then Install Now and Activate.
2

Set your currency to KES

Go to Downloads → Settings → General and set Currency to Kenyan Shilling (KES). The Fortpesa gateway only appears at checkout for KES stores.
3

Get your Fortpesa details

In your Fortpesa dashboard, create an API key under Settings → API keys and copy it right away — it is shown only once. Then note your Channel ID from Channels (the Channel ID column on the channels list).
Keep the API key on your server only — never in client-side code. If you lose the key, revoke it and create a new one.
4

Configure the gateway

Go to Downloads → Settings → Payment Gateways → Fortpesa (M-Pesa) and paste your API key, Channel ID (required) and webhook secret (optional but recommended). Then under Payment Gateways → General, tick Fortpesa (M-Pesa) in the list of enabled gateways and save.
You can also set the API key and webhook secret as wp-config.php constants — FORTPESA_API_KEY and FORTPESA_WEBHOOK_SECRET — which override whatever is saved on the settings screen.
5

Add the webhook

The plugin settings screen shows your Webhook URL — it looks like this:
Add that URL under Settings → Webhooks in your Fortpesa dashboard, then copy the whsec_… secret it gives you and paste it back into the plugin.
6

Test with a small order

Place a small real order (KES 10 or so) and approve the prompt on your phone. The order should complete and the download should unlock.
There is no sandbox: test with a real payment of KES 1 or more. Keep your Fortpesa wallet topped up — the platform fee is deducted from it, and collections fail with INSUFFICIENT_CREDIT when it is empty.

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Good to know

  • Your customer enters their phone number, gets an STK push, and lands on a “Check your phone” page that reloads itself every 5 seconds until M-Pesa confirms.
  • Orders only complete after a fresh status check returns success and the amount matches — the signed webhook (HMAC-SHA256, 5-minute replay window) finishes the job even if the customer closes the browser.
  • Cancelled, failed and expired prompts mark the EDD order Failed — the customer can retry from checkout.
  • Every API outcome is logged under Downloads → Tools → Logs → Payment Errors (the API key is never logged; phone numbers are masked).
  • Order totals with cents are rounded up to whole shillings; references sent to Fortpesa look like EDD1234 (max 12 characters).

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Next steps